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Ugly Betty - TJ Magnum V8 Conversion and more

185K views 745 replies 48 participants last post by  Jason 
#1 ·
Ugly Betty - TJ Magnum V8 conversion, Auto transmission swap and more, if I survive this.

Prologue:

I have a 2005 TJ with the I6 that I built running 35s. When I bought it, I was looking for a super clean, low mile, unmolested Jeep to build on. It has D44 / HPD30 / Tummy Tucked / 4.56s and a bunch of other goodies. It functions really well for the kind of stuff we do around here, but is still comfortable enough to drive daily if necessary.


^^ As dirty as it ever gets. ^^

The problem is it's too nice for me to damage or drill a bunch of holes in. It gets stored in the winter because of the destructive salt used on the road 6 months out of the year. The 05 has some pinstripes and nicks from the trails, but I want to get on some harder trails and really push what I can build. I'm going to continue to "build" it, but the upgrades will be fairly minor at this point. Brakes, steering and the like.

So I set out to buy a cheap TJ. I want something that I don't feel bad about cutting holes in or generally abusing. Around here, it's next to impossible to find a running TJ of any year that isn't falling apart for under $5K. Most times cheap TJs in my area were plagued with cancerous rust. I researched insurance auctions, but found that to be very difficult without an inside man, public auctions had pretty big fees, and even wrecked Wranglers can go for close to retail cost. I checked out Davey's Jeeps, and the one that I found with potential sold the day after I called about it. I even found a few folks with bare frames and bodies, but once you add up the odds and ends, it gets just as expensive as buying a complete TJ. Needless to say, I spent much time searching.

I finally happened across a fairly solid 97 TJ with a 4 cylinder. It had a new factory style top, new tires, and the frame and body were mostly rust free. The carpet was long gone and interior was lined with the spray in liner. It was about 2.5 hours away. I took an afternoon off work and drove out to see it, pocket full of cash and trailer in tow.

It was located just north of Detroit. I met the guy at his shop near the corner of a busy intersection. I ended up parking in the lot next door to his place because it looked easier to get the truck + trailer in and out. The Jeep started, and drove around the parking lot without much fuss, so I handed the guy some money. I didn't want to try to turn left into the traffic, then left again to get into the parking lot where my truck and trailer were parked, and I don't know the area, so I did what any good Jeeper would do and just drove it over the curb through the grass. (It wasn't that big, but I still thought it was funny.) On to the trailer and home we went.

The paint scheme was unique, and certainly not what I would have chosen. She's got a few other minor bumps and bruises too. Since I am now a two-Jeep household again, I couldn't simply refer to either as "the Jeep" anymore. I started calling it Ugly Betty, and the name kind of stuck.


^^ Beauty, in the eye of the beholder. I guess. ^^
 
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#546 ·
Tiny little update:

I tightened those pan bolts a bit. Half of them were loose and needed 1/2 turn or better to be snug.

Since my fenders are long gone, and no word yet on my replacement parts, I put some turn signals in the bumper on a break from work.

Parking lights:



Turn:

 
#548 ·
Yeah, not much progress. :laugh:

I have some other projects that have been keeping me busy. Plus trying to enjoy the short summer in Michigan and work on the other Jeep, I haven't had much time.

I never wired the OD defeat. I have a wire under the shifter taped up. All it should require is a momentary switch or button to disable the OD. A short to ground is what triggers the OD defeat.
 
#553 ·
Say whatever you want about it, it gets good MPG, and it isn't terrible to drive (pretty much the anti-Jeep? Lol.). I bought hers with a 2 year bumper to bumper warranty and maintence. Her old car was getting downright unsafe. I'm just happy she's in a car I don't have to work on or worry about.
 
#555 ·
Awesomesauce. Yer thread has been invaluable for my own 5.9 swap. Best mod ive done yet. Soooo much fun now! I went with an nv4500 tranny and couldnt be happier with that too.

Whats the latest on Ugly Betty? Give us some more gossip to talk about. :)
 
#557 ·
Thanks. I went with the auto because that's what I had and the PCM matched. I prefer straight shift, but went with what was economical.

The old girl hasn't been doing much. I drive her around a bit, but haven't done any work lately. I've been driving around the other Jeep since it has been summer. Winter is coming soon, so I should have some time to get doing some work again.
 
#558 ·
Driveshafts

Jason,

I'm fairly certain I saw how you mounted the engine and tranny, but could you remind me? It's late and my eyes are failing me. I already have a rear DC driveshaft and SYE, so keeping the transfer case in the factory location is ideal to me. Is that the route you went? Also, what's your hold up on the front DS out of curiosity? Clearance issues or having a new one built? Thanks.

Linn
 
#559 ·
I mounted the engine with a set of mounts purchased from Advance Adapters. There is a hole in the frame, that matches with a dowel on the engine mounts. The recommendation is to match the dowel up with that hole. Doing so, I was able to retain the factory Jeep driveshafts. Keep in mind I'm on zero lift as well....

Not sure about your question with the front DS? I also used the factory front DS from the Jeep. It's all hooked up and has been basically trouble free. Your HP44 might present clearance issues.

I chose to use the recommended mounting location because it allows me to use the factory shafts, at least for now, while running stock axles, zero lift. I didn't want to make (or have made) driveshafts twice.

The only things I could have gained by moving the mounts would be (and the trade offs listed as well):
- Axle clearance by moving the engine up (but the engine would be too high, the air cleaner already hits the hood.)
- Fan clearance by moving the engine down (but the pan is then closer to the ground, and the axle would be dangerously close to hitting, the upper control arm already gets into the engine mount on the driver side.)
- Driveshaft length by moving the engine forward (but losing fan clearance).
- Fan clearance by moving it backward (but losing driveshaft length.)

Because of these trade offs, using the recommended position seemed wisest.
 
#560 ·
Jason said:
I mounted the engine with a set of mounts purchased from Advance Adapters. There is a hole in the frame, that matches with a dowel on the engine mounts. The recommendation is to match the dowel up with that hole. Doing so, I was able to retain the factory Jeep driveshafts. Keep in mind I'm on zero lift as well.... Not sure about your question with the front DS? I also used the factory front DS from the Jeep. It's all hooked up and has been basically trouble free. Your HP44 might present clearance issues. I chose to use the recommended mounting location because it allows me to use the factory shafts, at least for now, while running stock axles, zero lift. I didn't want to make (or have made) driveshafts twice. The only things I could have gained by moving the mounts would be (and the trade offs listed as well): - Axle clearance by moving the engine up (but the engine would be too high, the air cleaner already hits the hood.) - Fan clearance by moving the engine down (but the pan is then closer to the ground, and the axle would be dangerously close to hitting, the upper control arm already gets into the engine mount on the driver side.) - Driveshaft length by moving the engine forward (but losing fan clearance). - Fan clearance by moving it backward (but losing driveshaft length.) Because of these trade offs, using the recommended position seemed wisest.
What tranny are you using? I used the AA mounts in the recommended location with an ax-15 and had to adjust both shafts over 2"
 
#562 ·
Sorry jump in on your post, but here is what I found. With the AA adapter mounted in the recomended spot the drive shaft lenghts were perfect. The problem I had was when I was planning to switch from a lp 30 to Hp 44 the drive shaft would hit the exhaust. Now i am either considering a waggy 44 or more lift. I wanted to be as low as possible on 37s, but it is now looking like a 3 or 4" lift would be required to have adequate clearence. It may be possible to chop the exhaust a bit more as well but I don't want to go there again. This is a 5.9l with a 46re as well. I do however have a 1" body lift which really helped with the underhood clearence issues. I was able to use the factory Dodge ram air box, but just spun it 180 degree and then cut the small tab off the throttle body.
 
#564 ·
I am running the stock dodge headers. I did it mostly to keep everything as close to dodge spec as i could while working out any bugs (O2 outputs etc). Makes my scan tool happier if things are unmodified. Now that things are all good and running close to perfect I will start to tune and mod things as needed. Block huggers like you have would have been the best way to go by far.
 
#567 ·
I modified the bracket, then wrapped the cable with heat shield. There wan't much room but it has actually held up really well I have about 6000miles on it with no problems. I will however be modifying things when I start the axle and suspension swap. I will post some pics of my set up when I am back home.
 
#568 ·
Time for an update. Betty got a little work tonight. Good news/bad news about my job. And, I learned a lesson about saving a buck.

I've been very busy at my job, and life in general. Summer around here means camping and wheeling, so I don't get much done in the way of Jeep building. Fall means getting ready for the winter. My job is always busy, but I've just been moved to another job. The work will be different, which is good because I needed a change. Bad because it is no less busy, and probably moreso. I don't expect to have much time to work on this anytime soon, but I finally found enough time to get working on the fenders.

I needed to cut the tube on both ends; too long on both sides and not angled right for the grille. I beat the bracket into shape where the fenders attach to the grille. The bracket is straight and the grille, obviously, curved.

Still need some fine tune the fit, but this is what it looks like.


Not terrible, but more messing around than I would have liked. Then I tossed the top piece of metal on to find this gap:



There's a few inches by the grill, tapering all the way back to where the indentation is in the hood for the hold-down. The grille bracket also sticks out in front of the grille a little and will need to be trimmed.

Remember that I bought these fenders as a DIY kit, pre-cut from a vendor on here. In addition to these issues, I had to have the brackets re-sent to me because they were cut wrong, twice. I have the tools and ability to make my own fenders, but I didn't want to spend a bunch of time on making them -- I have other things to keep me busy with this build, so I bought this pre-cut kit assuming everything would be premeasured and simply need assembly. Also the cheapest ones I could find. Lesson learned.

At this point I need to decide if I want to replace the ill fitting piece, or just buy another set of fenders.
 
#569 ·
Sorry if you already answered this but I didn't see it anywhere in your post. (Which helped me a ton in my 5.9 swap! Thank you so much for sharing your experience) Have you hooked up the AC yet? I haven't hooked mine up completely because I want it to look clean otherwise I would just use some splices and adapters.
 
#575 ·
More fender work today. Still not pleased with the fitment of these things. I eventually got it lined up to "acceptable."



Missing from the pic above is the tube that runs from the top of the fender, above the wheel, to the tub. That piece didn't fit for ****. Too long on one side, too short on the other, and the angle was bent wrong. I cut and adjusted it until it would fit.

I intended on grinding all the welds down smooth, but I think I may leave the welds undressed to go along with the theme of Ugly Betty. Thoughts? Go to the trouble of smoothing them out, filling, smoothing, rinse, repeat? Or leave the naked welds?



 
#577 ·
Leave em! Looks all utilitarian and to the point. I did that with one side as an experiment and wish I had left the other side too!
 
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